Choosing A Cat Litter Tray

1st February 2017

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At the outset, choosing a litter tray might seem like a simple task. But when you visit the pet store to make your purchase, you will find a wide choice of different products to choose from. To help you make the right choice for you and your cat, here’s an overview of the most common types of litter tray available to buy.

Open litter tray

An open litter tray is the simple. If you’re bringing a new kitten home, this will probably be your safest option. You can get one with low sides so your kitten can easily hop in and out. Plus, they’re cheap, which means you can wait and see if your cat likes this option before forking out on a more expensive tray.

Open litter tray with lip

This type of litter tray has all the advantages of the open tray described above but with an added lip. The lip is there to prevent your cat from kicking litter out of the tray, which helps to keep the area that surrounds it clean and tidy.

Oversized litter trays

When buying a litter tray, it’s best to consider the breed of cat your own. If you own a large breed of cat, for example, an oversized litter tray might be a wise choice. Oversized litter trays are also suited to shy or timid cats that don’t like closed-in spaces.

Litter tray with sieve

This option includes a top tray with a sieve that fits snugly over an extra bottom tray. The litter is placed on the top tray and when the cat goes to the toilet, the liquid naturally flows to the bottom tray. The advantage of a litter tray with a sieve is that you can clean out the bottom tray regularly, reducing odours.

Covered litter tray

As the name suggests, covered litter trays come with a little roof that offers your cat more privacy. Most covered models aren’t that much more expensive than standard open litter trays. The only drawback is that if the roof is too low, your cat might not be able to stand as they wish when doing their business.

Self-cleaning litter trays

As you’d expect, self-cleaning litter trays are the fanciest and most expensive option available to buy. Typically, self-cleaning litter trays include built-in mechanisms that empty the tray automatically, before depositing the waste in a disposable container that you remove, empty and rinse. Naturally, this type of litter tray makes waste removal a lot easier and more pleasant.

Litter tray tips and extras

If odour control becomes a problem, you can buy polythene litter tray liners and litter deodorants that will help maintain freshness. It’s sensible to replace the litter at least once a week as cats sometimes prefer to use the floor rather than a dirty litter tray. If you own more than one cat, it’s a good idea to have one litter tray per cat and at least one additional tray to the number of cats living in your household to prevent emergencies.

A clean litter tray is important for the health and hygiene of a cat. Find out more on cleaning litter trays by taking a look at our blog post here.